More good stuff on the open frontiers – 9/11

Just like the wild west in the late 1800s, the frontiers of private space exploration, energy and technology are wide open. A few articles to stretch your brain.

A decidedly low-tech countermeasure to surveillance drones:

9/2 – The Dish – Sheep Solved Drone Debate – From Buddhanz1. A ram is not amused with an intruding drone and takes it out. Is equally unamused by owner of said drone trying to make an escape with the recovered drone:

8/29 – Popular Science – Google Already Testing Delivery Robots in Australia – Amazon has competition. First successful delivery by a Google drone completed. It’s a VTOL drone. Carries cargo in a little box that can be lowered to the ground, then released. Very cool. Picture delivering a key part to a farmer in a field with a broken tractor. Or an oil rig crew that had a key part break. Some people would pay a lot of money to get a critical component in an hour or less.

8/30 – The Economist – Pseudo-satellites – The west wind blows afresh – As an inexpensive alternative to a satellite, consider an ultra-light, propeller-driven, solar powered plane that can indefinitely orbit over one place at altitude of 70,000 feet during the day. At night it slowly spirals down to 50,000 feet until gathering sunlight the next day. Models in testing now can stay aloft for a couple of weeks. Concept it to stay aloft for months at a time.

9/8 – The Feed – The Robots Are Coming to the Developing World Too – Robots are starting to replace assembly line workers…in China. Tedious, dangerous assembly line jobs are moving to robotics. This transition will rough for everyone, but likely more difficult in developing countries. The end result will be great, but the transition will be painful.

Downside of technology

9/6 – The Economist – The two towers – Junk science is putting innocent people in jail – Cell phone calls don’t necessarily go to the nearest tower. Based on loads, signal strength, and other factors, any specific call could go to any tower within distance. The unsupported and invalid assumption that every call will only go to the nearest tower is being used as evidence against innocent people.

8/20 – the Feed – Refracking Ready to Rejuvenate Shale Revolution – Energy companies are starting to refrack wells that were fracked early on in the shale revolution. Completion technologies have improved since the early days of 2007 and 2008. It is possible output will revive to initial levels by applying current techniques. Even Reuters is noticing, not just Million Dollar Way.

8/30 – Miami Herald – Venezuela: From oil power to oil importer and 9/6 – The Feed – Venezuela Set to Import Oil – Net oil output has dropped from 3.1M bopd in ’97 to 1.7M bopd in ’13. Production of light crude has dropped so severely that light crude will soon be imported from Algeria. The reason? The extra heavy oil needs to be mixed with light crude so the extra heavy stuff can be moved through pipelines. This is a case study in how authoritarian socialist governments can destroy their most lucrative and productive industry.